Dates collections fall of credit reports

[neonangelwings]

I have some collections on my credit reports. I thought the general understanding was items would remain on your report for 7 years. However my transunion report has an estimated date item will be removed from credit report after each negative item and it is not 7 years. Why could this be? Do Experian, Equifax, and Transunion have different policies? 

 For instance I have a debt in collections placed 8/22/2008 which says it is estimated to come off 06/2014. Which is roughly 5 years and 10 months. Then there is one placed for collections 1/17/2008 and it is estimated to be removed 11/2014 which is 6 years and 10 months. Also, another that was placed for collections 11/28/2011 and will come of 07/2015 which is 3 years and 8 months. 

 I had some serious health problems and now that they are straightend out would like to get my credit report fixed maybe start sending pay for delete letters but I don't know where to start since there seems to be no reason behind the estimated dates they will fall off. Would these dates hold true for the other collection agencies as well? In all between all three reports i have about 7 things in collections and an experian fico of about 620. Any advice is appreciated.

[RobertEG]

It is a common misunderstanding by some not familiar with the current FCRA that the date of collection referreral or reporting of a collection fixes it credit report exclusion date.

That is not now the case.

When the FCRA was first enacted, the exclusion of collections was confusing and incomsistent, as the statute referred vaguely to the date referred for collection, resulting in the reset of the credit report exclusion date when a debt was passed to a new debt collector.

Congress amended the FCRA way back in 1996 to clarify the exclusion date of any collection or charge-off as being based on 7 years plus 180 days from one, single, date-certain, which is the date of first delinquency (DOFD) on the original creditor (OC) account that preceded the collection or charge-off.

It is the first delinquency in the chain of most recent delinquency that immediately preceded their reported collection.

Thus, the date a debt collector obtains collection authority or chooses to report their collection has zero relevance to when their reported collection reaches its credit report exclusion date.  That amendment is shown in sections 605(c) and 623(a)(5) of the current FCRA.

Whenever a debt collector reports a collection, they are required to obtain the DOFD from the OC, and report that date to the CRA within 90 days after reporting of their collection (FCRA 623(a)(5) provides the details of how they obtain the DOFD).  The CRA then records that date, and uses it to determine the maximum date which, thereafter, they must exclude the collection from any credit report they issue.  Seven years plus 180 days is the maximum period, and the CRAs can, and normally do, exclude months prior to that maxiumum statutory date in order to ensure that they dont violate the statute.  Thus, estimated dates vary between the CRAs based on their internal policy for earlier exclusion.

The earlier exclusion dates that you are seeing means the reported DOFD occured years prior to when the debt collector obtained their collection authority.

The DOFD is the only date that can be used by the CRAs to calculate the expected or maximum credit report exclusion date.